A Guide to Chicken Egg Colors

Why do chickens lay different colored eggs? Learn the simple reason for different colors in the egg basket.

One of the things that I often see with people who are accustomed to grocery store eggs, is a look of shock. Shock when they open my egg carton to discover a variety of colors.

Most people who buy their eggs at a typical grocery have no idea that eggs come in colors besides white or tan. But chicken eggs can be white, cream, deep espresso, blue, freckled, or even green!

What Determines Egg Color?

Very simple: Genetics. Primarily the breed of a chicken determines what color the eggs will be. Now there may be some slight variation, but the eggs will generally all be of the same color family if they come from a particular breed.

Does Color Make a Difference?

The second question I am most often asked about the egg color, is, “Do they taste differently?”

Egg color makes no difference in the taste of the eggs, though I do have a few customers that swear the blue ones taste the best. The number one factor for egg flavor, is how the chicken lives.

Do the chickens had a healthy diet and natural environment? The healthier the chicken, the better the eggs. Pretty much every egg customer I have ever had, says that once they taste our eggs, that they can’t go back to eggs from the store.

The color doesn’t make a difference for the flavor, but it sure is fun to have them!